"Royalist or Roundhead ?" Topic

Another Leveller here
Ian

@Jefthro3
Long live the king !

@Sandinista
Yes another Leveler here.

Your allegiances would all have been dictated (if they weren't already chosen for you by your Lord/employer/pastor) by your circumstances at the time. In no particular order…..family background, wealth (or lack of), religion and/or devotion, community ties, availability of reading material, degree of education, occupation, and so on and so on.

I support our constitutional monarchy today, however in the 1640's I would have sided with parliament and used the cry "For King and Parliament " to establish such a type of monarchy.
I feel once the short lived republic and the chaos that caused started I would like many others have fought to restore a monarch.

I must confess that despite my fascination with the period, I am still completely bamboozled by the vitriol this innocent question arouses in some circles. There are some professional historians who behave as though this was a series of conflicts that took place 15-20 years ago. To be fair, they are mostly Royalist leaning, usually with a connection to the Society of King Charles the Martyr; there are some leaning towards Parliament who aren't averse to spitting vitriol, but they are in a minority. These were wars that were fought nearly 400 years ago for heavens sake. I'd have thought that the dust would have settled by now.

I can understand the hatred for Cromwell in Ireland; a very different issue.

Me? I must confess to leaning towards the Levellers and Diggers wanting to create a free and equal society. 'Mainstream' Parliamentarian cause, was pretty indistinguishable from the Royalist cause.

My family loyalty was Parliamentarian, with a great X lots uncle the Parliamentarian treasurer for Lancashire; and a great X lots grandfather captaining a company for Colonel Holland's RoF, then the Army Newly Modelled. So I guess I would probably have followed the family.

I can understand the hatred for Cromwell in Ireland; a very different issue.

Ironically, Cromwell's atrocities were largely invented – or at least grossly exaggerated – by contemporary Royalist propaganda designed to get us Irish on-side with the Restoration. Tom Reilly's book "Cromwell: an honourable enemy" deals with this admirably – he actually hanged his own men for stealing chickens from Irish civilians.

Know all about Royalist propaganda over egging the pudding, coupled with what was accepted as 'fair game' in the C17th, Cromwell's reputation has been made him into a bogeyman.

I was trying to be diplomatic and not cause offence 😉

I agree, Tom Reilly's book "Cromwell: an honourable enemy" is a good book to read, I enjoyed it a lot.
Ian

Royalist. Cromwell was a poseur.